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'Top of the pyramid' dealer caught red-handed at cocaine factory has sentence cut on appeal
Summary
Tony McInerney, a 27‑year‑old drug dealer from Ennis, was sentenced to 12 years in prison in May 2021 for possession of cocaine for sale and for possessing €4,500 in proceeds of crime. The judge imposed an 11‑year term for the drug offence and a three‑year term for the cash offence, with the final two years of the cash sentence suspended. McInerney was caught "red‑handed" at a property in Kilfilum where he was mixing cocaine, wearing orange gloves and holding a bag of the drug. Gardaí seized mixing agents, a weighing scale, a knife, a blender, €2.5K in cash and an estimated €50K worth of cocaine. In September 2020, he pleaded guilty to both charges. On appeal, the Court of Appeal quashed the original sentence and re‑sentenced him to a total of 10 years' imprisonment, with no portion of either sentence suspended, back‑dated to the date of his first arrest.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: 'Top of the pyramid' dealer caught red-handed at cocaine factory has sentence cut on appeal. Charges or matters: possession of cocaine for sale or supply at Kilfilum, Ennis, Co Clare, on September 23, 2020, and to possessing crime cash on the same date. Procedural stage: appeal
When:
- May 2021 Incident
- September 23, 2020 Incident
- 2023-05-16 Publication
Why: Judge O'Callaghan said there are "people in hospital and in the graveyards of this country because of his actions and of his colleagues – his buddies – so called 'drug lords'. CNI source report
Case subjects
Convicted Person
Charges: possession of cocaine for sale or supply at Kilfilum, Ennis, Co Clare, on September 23, 2020, and to possessing crime cash on the same date (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: Tony McInerney was jailed for 12 years by Judge Brian O'Callaghan at Ennis Circuit Criminal Court in May 2021 after he was caught "red-handed" mixing cocaine when gardaí raided a property outside Ennis, Co Clare. At the Court of Appeal today, Mr Justice George Birmingham said the three-judge court would quash the original sentence and re-sentence McInerney to a total of 10 years' imprisonment with no portion of either sentence suspended.
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